Fantasy Recap: Week 4

James Morris hails from Rio Rancho, NM and has been playing fantasy sports for just over 15 years. Not only does he write the Bengals fantasy section, but he also does the Miami Dolphins fantasy section. Crossing over, Morris writes the fantasy sections for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA. Just send him an email and he will reply back the same day with your answer. Or, find him on Twitter (Fantasyguy23) and get all your NFL news before it hits the national media.

Andy Dalton to A.J. Green is going to be how scoring recaps are going to start out for years to come in the NFL. And, this weekend was no different as Dalton hooked up with Green for 6 catches, 117 yards and a TD. Dalton wasn’t too shabby either as he finished with 244 yards and 3 TDs (2 passing, 1 rushing).

The defense gave up just 10 points, while racking up 6 sacks, an INT and a recovered fumble. Those numbers were good enough to put the Bengals at No. 6 in NFL.com fantasy leagues in Week 4.

And I normally pay absolutely no attention to kickers for fantasy purposes, but I do have to give a high-five to St. Louis Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein. The kid broke the franchise record for longest FG twice, in the same game! He finished with four FGs, and the two record-breakers were from 58 and 60 yards out. He was the No. 1 fantasy kicker this week with 17 points in NFL.com scoring.

WINNERS

Ryan Fitzpatrick – QB, Bills: It wasn’t pretty, and Fitzpatrick wasn’t the best QB in this game, but his horribly wonderful fantasy day ends with 350 yards passing, 4 INTs and 4 TDs. The only reason he had so many yards and TDs was due to the game being out of hand in the fourth quarter, but as the old adage goes: a win is a win is a win.

Cam Newton – QB, Panthers: Cam I Am didn’t wow you with the arm, but he came through for fantasy owners nevertheless. Newton finished with just 215 yards passing, but he was able to run for 85 yards, throw 2 TDs, and run for a TD.

Stevan Ridley and Brandon Boldin – RBs, Patriots: Ridley and Boldin combined for 243 yards and 3 TDs (Ridley: 106 and 2 TDs, and Boldin: 136 and a TD). The game was in doubt until the second half when the Patriots come out firing on all cylinders and then the ground game took over once the game was out of control.

Jackie Battle – RB, Chargers: Battle was able to rumble his way to 39 yards rushing, 42 yards receiving and 2 TDs on Sunday. Coach Norv Turner was trying to send a message to Ryan Mathews after his Week 3 fumble, but this game was never in any real danger of getting away from the Chargers and the coaching staff knew it. Don’t pick him up this week, Mathews will start next week.

Brian Hartline – WR, Dolphins: And the No. 1 fantasy WR for Week 4 is ... little known, Brian Hartline! Those in PPR leagues did even better with the 12 receptions, but the 253 yards and a TD is sure to lead the way in any format.

Andre Roberts – WR, Cardinals: Roberts is owned in just 1.2 percent of NFL.com leagues, yet he finished in the top 5 for fantasy WRs. The little-known WR hauled in 8 passes for 118 yards and 2 TDs. He is going to be a rollercoaster ride for anyone brave enough to own him, so you will have to pick and choose when and where you play him going forward.

Scott Chandler – TE, Bills: Chandler is a big red zone target for Fitzpatrick, and he came through on Sunday with 62 yards and 2 TDs. TE is an all-or-nothing position in fantasy football, but Chandler is going to be too erratic to start in standard size leagues.

San Francisco 49ers Defense: The 49ers defense showed up on Sunday and held the Jets scoreless, while adding 3 sacks, 3 fumbles recovered, 1 INT and 1 defensive TD. That equals 27.00 fantasy points in Dolphins NFL.com fantasy football league, and they take home the No. 1 defensive ranking in Week 4.

LOSERS

Christian Ponder – QB, Vikings: The Vikings scored of the opening kickoff, and ran a punt back in the third quarter, so this is not so much as what Ponder didn’t do, just that they simply didn’t need him in this one. After back-to-back weeks of throwing 2 TDs, Ponder finished the day with just 111 yards passing and no TDs.

Mark Sanchez – QB, Jets: Jets fans are hating life right about now, which brings a smile to every Dolphins fan I know. The Jets got absolutely embarrassed by the 49ers defense on Sunday, and Sanchez finished with just 103 yards passing, 1 INT and 1 lost fumble. That equates to 0.12 fantasy points for those in NFL.com leagues (and a 0 for those in Yahoo standard scoring leagues).

Ryan Williams – RB, Cardinals: You would be surprised by the sheer number of people I had asking be if they should start Williams over people like Matt Forte, Alfred Morris and Darren Sproles. My answer was unequivocally NO. I would rather miss one good game from an unproven RB like Williams, than sit someone like Morris or Forte and miss out on what we know they can provide. I was right by the way, as Williams ran for just 26 empty yards on Sunday.

Ahmad Bradshaw and Andre Brown – RBs Giants: Just as many people who asked me about Williams, also asked about Bradshaw and Brown. My advice was essentially the same, sit them both down until we know how the workload shakes out. Bradshaw ended up with 13 carries for 39 yards, while Brown ended up with just 5 carries for 14 yards.

Julio Jones – WR, Falcons: Every NFL player is going to have his bad games, and this was sure one of the bad ones for Jones. He caught just one ball for 30 yards, and that catch didn’t come until late in the game. The good news is that he did get targeted 8 times, but you also have to wonder how much his right hand hindered his game this week. Either way, he is an elite WR and should be played as such.

Jeremy Maclin – WR, Eagles: For those who asked me about Maclin and I told them to go ahead and stick him in their lineup, sorry. He finished with a single catch for a whopping 7 yards. The Eagles are 3-1 this season, but the offense is all over the map in terms of fantasy production. I would sit Maclin until he proves he is back in Vick’s good graces (3 targets in week 4).

Martellus Bennett – TE, Giants: Bennett has shot up the TE depth charts in every league out there, but this week he failed to deliver on the lofty expectations we all put on him. Bennett had scored in the Giants first three games, but was targeted just 3 times in this one. This is precisely why more leagues are shying away from a traditional TE roster position and instead opting for a WR/TE flex spot.

New York Jets Defense: This is exactly why I advised you all last week to jump ship on the Jets defense. They held the 49ers offense to just 28 points while racking up 2 sacks. Yes, I am being sarcastic. The Jets were the worst fantasy defense this week and I'd cut bait and pick up whoever plays the Browns or Jaguars each week.

Recent Articles

Week 14 marks the start of the fantasy playoffs for most leagues, so your start/sit decisions now are more important than ever. There are no more dart throws allowed; you can only play the people you are confident in.

The good, and bad, thing about fantasy football is you know by around Week 4 if you did well in the draft, and have a chance to make the playoffs. Or, if you missed the mark and are on the outside, looking in, on the post-season. With Week 12 at our feet, are either in, out, or in the final rounds of the fight for that last playoff spot.